Taking his family out on a vacation, Saurabh Pramanik booked a tour package to Hong Kong through TravelTriangle at a price of Rs 180,000. His package was inclusive of his stay, local tours, tickets, and transfers. After all the fun and frolic, here, he gives a vivid account of his Hong Kong trip.

An easy and kids-friendly location, I found Hong Kong to be the best place for a family holiday. Throughout the course of the trip, not even once did I feel that the presence of my wife and my daughter refrained me from doing anything adventurous. We all enjoyed together as a family and did not cut back on any sort of adventure. Just when I had finalized Hong Kong to be the one, I thought that it would be a good idea to make things easier for myself by booking a Hong Kong package with TravelTriangle. I had booked a package through them once, earlier; and had tested their service. Eventually, the trip turned out to be a success.

Day 1: Arriving in Hong Kong

On landing in Hong Kong, we were picked up by our travel guide-cum-driver who took us to the hotel, straight off. We rested a bit at the hotel and in the second half of the day, the tour guide was back to pick us for the sightseeing tour in Hong Kong. We started by visiting the Jewelry factory where we witnessed the manufacturing of jewelry and left for The Peak. The route to the Peak was to be covered in the Peak tram which featured scenic views of the city on the way. The Peak offered a beautiful panoramic city view, which totally blew our minds. We then proceeded to the famous Madame Tussauds where we had a good time. We posed around a bit, explored the statues and left for our hotel.

The best thing about the hotel that we were staying at, the Crown Plaza, was that it was in a quieter neighborhood. Although it was a bit cut off from the hustle-bustle of mainstream Hong Kong, transportation was not a problem. There was a metro station nearby and even the local taxi service was good enough.

Day 2: Disney Land in Hong Kong

One of the main reasons that we chose Hong Kong was its famous amusement parks. So when the day scheduled for Disneyland arrived, we were brimming with excitement. We got a pick up from the driver in a shared vehicle and took off for the amusement park. We reached Disneyland at 10 am and the whole day was spent in the company of its amazing rides, the likes of which we had never experienced before. From the made-up Disney characters to the parade, my family and I loved every single bit of Disneyland Hong Kong.

Within the theme park, we went to a lot of places. We tried Dumbo the Flying Elephant, Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway, Mystic Point, Space Point and a lot more rides. Out of all these, Mystic Manor turned out to be our favorite. The visual effects inside the manor’s mysterious rooms were an absolute treat to watch. Apart from this, Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway was also thoroughly entertaining. The little details of the park did wonders and brought the whole experience to life.

Since outside food was not allowed inside the park, we had lunch at the park’s restaurant and resumed the adventure rides. In the evening, before exiting the park, we bought some Disney tees and bags for my daughter Shamika and were back at the hotel by 8 pm. We got the dinner served at an eating joint in MTR mall again and totally exhausted by now, we went off to sleep.

Day 3: The all in one entertainer – The Ocean Park

A must visit when in Hong Kong, the Ocean Park caters to all age groups and levels. The park was huge and we took as many rides as we could in a day. There were water rides, a gigantic aquarium, a dolphin show and various other adventure rides. There were a lot more things to look out for, like the enclosure of the panda, and the red fox, which we got to admire from the outside.

This was our second visit to any adventure park in Hong Kong after the previous day’s visit to Disneyland. Both the adventure parks were unique and I thoroughly enjoyed both the days. But Shamika liked Disneyland more than the Oceans Park, maybe because she got to meet her favorite Disney princesses there. In fact, I felt that Ocean’s Park was more adult-oriented when compared to Disney and catered to the adults as much as the kids, to a greater extent. We got free from the park in the evening and asked our driver to drop us at a good Indian restaurant this time. Post-dinner, we walked around a bit, took a local taxi and got back to the hotel.

Day 4: Hong Kong’s blessing — Lantau Island

For the concrete jungle that Hong Kong is, Lantau Island is a saving grace. As the clock struck 9, our cab arrived to take us to the Cable Car station leading to the Lantau Island. The station was a bit far off from the hotel and once there, we took the 6 km long ropeway to reach the Island. The Island in itself was a beautiful place to be — lush greenery, quaint environment, and a very serene aura.

During the rest of the 4 hours that we spent at the island, there was no hassle and the aura of the place allowed us a peaceful yet happening family-time together. We walked around the unique Tai O fishing village (where the local fishermen’s homes are built on stilts) and visited the Po Lin Monastery. Near the Monastery stood the majestic Giant Buddha statue, which is the largest outdoor bronze statue in the world.

The tour of Lantau Island concluded at around 2:30 and we had the rest of the day was to ourselves. So we shopped around in the local markets, bought some jewelry, home décor items etc. The day was concluded with a dinner at a Chinese restaurant, where we ordered Hong Kong’s delicious specialty – Roasted Duck.

Day 5: Sightseeing in Hong Kong

In the morning, we visited the Tin Hua temple and did some shopping around the Temple Street market, buying jewelry and gifts for relatives and friends. Most of the day we used the metro since we hadn’t booked a cab on this day. We also visited one of the most famous tourist attractions in Hong Kong which we had missed on the first day, i.e. the Sky Tower. It was certainly a feast for the eyes, as we witnessed a bird’s eye view of the whole city.

We took the MTR and boarded a double decker bus to reach the Repulse Bay, where Shamika had a lot of fun building castles of sand and playing around. There, we spent around 2-3 hours, hand lunch and went for some more shopping. As we grew hungry, we felt like having Indian cuisines. So we searched for an Indian restaurant on Tripadvisor and went for dinner. Amidst a pleasant weather, we explored the streets of Hong Kong and returned to the hotel.

Day 6: Flying back home

After breakfast at the hotel, we checked out and left for the Hong Kong Airport to catch our onward flight.

High Point: As a family out on a holiday, we enjoyed the day at Lantau Island the most. I was simple, fun, cozy and peaceful.

Low Point: Hong Kong has a lot to offer. We did not have enough time to explore any more places.

Tips to travel to Hong Kong: Don’t just go by what the agent tells you. Explore the place by yourself too.